Stopping Sprawl

December/January 2001
By the Mother Earth News editors 
Article Tools
Print
Comments
RSS
Bookmark and Share

Legal Watch:

RELATED CONTENT

A recent grassroots effort in Virginia will keep one rural county grassy.

Last summer Loudoun County, Virginia, a suburban/rural area south of Washington, D.C., passed a plan aimed at keeping the area from being overdeveloped. The county's board of supervisors passed the plan on a 7-2 vote, killing a planned Interstate through the area and axing 83,158 potential homesites. The plan also protects natural and historic sites from overdevelopment and will divide the suburban area of the county into four distinct communities with real town centers - not just shopping malls.

The plan was built from the ground up, with 11 public input sessions, two formal hearings and many roundtable discussions bringing together the residents of the county. But perhaps the biggest key to Loudon's success was a concentrated effort by voters' groups to educate and inform residents on urban sprawl. The Voters to Stop Sprawl evaluated and endorsed candidates for the board of supervisors, getting eight out of nine elected.

"It's a good victory for an area literally on the edge of a suburban area, and that's where the smart growth battle is waged," said Peggy Maio, Loudoun County field officer for the Piedmont Environmental Council ( www.pec-va.org ). "Our rural landscape is going to remain a rural landscape - a working rural landscape."

The Slow Growth Movement has spread to nearby counties as well. Greg Gorham, a member of the Voters to Stop Sprawl in neighboring Prince William County, said his group's efforts were just an election behind Loudoun's. Gorham points to how Loudoun's branch managed to get Smart Growth candidates into office with very little money used against well-funded incumbents. "With voter turnout being so low, it doesn't take much to swing an election," Gorham said. "What's going to happen 20 years from now? Those decisions are being decided now."

Bookmark and Share
RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print

Comments

Add Your Comment

Please note that there is currently a problem with the comments function and your comment may or may not post successfully. We are working to correct the problem and thank you for your patience. 

You can use this comment form to enter your personal experiences or additional information and resources that you'd like to share with Mother Earth News readers. Your helpful advice will be posted on this page.  E-mail addresses are never displayed on comments, but they are required to confirm your comments.

Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.

New to Mother Earth News?
Sign up to share comments.
Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.
Name*
Your name appears next to your comment.

E-mail Address*
This will be your login ID.

City State Zip Code

Password*


Confirm Password*

Comments
1500 character limit (Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)
Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.
FEATURED ARTICLES
MOST POPULAR


Subscribe Today - Pay Now & Save 66% Off the Cover Price

First Name: *
 Last Name: *
Address: *
 City: *
State/Province: *
 Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:
 Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Lighten the Strain on the Earth and Your Budget

Mother Earth News is the guide to living — as one reader stated — “with little money and abundant happiness.” Every issue is an invaluable guide to leading a more sustainable life, covering ideas from fighting rising energy costs and protecting the environment to avoiding unnecessary spending on processed food. You’ll find tips for slashing heating bills; growing fresh, natural produce at home; and more. Mother Earth News helps you cut costs without sacrificing modern luxuries.

At Mother Earth News, we are dedicated to conserving our planet’s natural resources while helping you conserve your financial resources. That’s why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing through our Earth-Friendly automatic renewal savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you save an additional $4.95 and get 6 issues of Mother Earth News for only $10.00 (USA only).

You may also use the Bill Me option and pay $14.95 for 6 issues.